Learning & Development: CL&L - Joined-up thinking

While inextricably intertwined, Communication, Language and Literacy (CL&L) are now split under the revised Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) into a Prime (C&L) and Specific (L) area. The Talk for Reading (TfR) initiative, developed by East Riding of Yorkshire Council, is helping early years practitioners to bridge the 'gap' and view children's development in a more holistic way.

Children make critical links with reading while learning the sounds, patterns and meanings of words in the context of chatting, singing and playing. The strategies that they use in acquiring language skills are also replayed and adapted when it comes to learning how to read and write.

At a practical level, young children's natural curiosity to communicate their needs, develop their talk and understand language is positively supported and extended through the sharing of books and stories, while reading provides the perfect springboard for older children to express their ideas and interests.

The TfR initiative grew out of earlier tried-and-tested programmes including the Every Child a Talker (ECAT) programme, Communication, Language and Literacy Development, Early Reading Connects, Bookstart and an earlier local authority initiative, Make Talking Matter.

Like its predecessors, TfR is based on sound research and aims to:

• support the development and progress of children's CL&L skills across the EYFS

• build practitioner and teacher knowledge, understanding, experience and confidence in supporting children's CL&L development, and

• increase families' involvement in children's early CL&L skills.

The programmes also share a similar format. In TfR, a Self Evaluation Form (SEF) helps practitioners to identify current good practice, think about how they could further support children's talk and reading, then map out a plan of action on how to build in incremental improvements to practice over a period of time.

Since the launch of the scheme, settings have been clustered in geographical areas to form a learning community, based around a primary school and children's centre with private and voluntary providers and some childminders.

Each setting has had a TfR partner. Some of these have become TfR champions, sharing their work more widely and supporting others. TfR has also combined the support and mentoring from local authority early years consultants and speech and language therapists.

Now two years on, the ideas, strategies and materials have been brought together in a TfR resource pack, which includes seven case studies of TfR Champions and a CD containing materials, from Top Tips to Supporting Parents and ECAT Materials.

WOVEN TOGETHER

Through TfR, practitioners viewed talking and reading not as separate entities but as two elements to be woven together. As well as supporting and extending children's talk, practitioners looked for authentic ways to make links to reading. For example, in one setting, children talked about environmental print they saw day to day, such as names of supermarkets, branding on packets and favourite games and toys. Parents also began to point out examples, which increased their children's recognition of letters and significant words.

Other ideas included:

• using learning stories to document children's talking and thinking

• creating a discovery area to support children's talking, reading and writing

• sending a teddy bear home with a diary and camera and using Bookstart Packs to encourage a love of books and reading

• using Hanen strategies like OWLs (Observe Wait Listen) and POP (Pointing Out Print) and Strive for Five (essential steps to extending and building a conversation).

CASE STUDY: WITHERNSEA PRIMARY SCHOOL

On completing the TfR Self Evaluation Form, Foundation Stage lead teacher Emma Greenwood identified the need to focus on practitioners' understanding of children's language development and how they could develop their own skills to encourage reluctant talkers.

To achieve these goals, the school:

• held hour-long meetings every three weeks for all staff members in the Foundation Stage unit

• paired up members of staff to observe each other and discuss their practice, and

• followed a reflective cycle - taking areas of learning and looking at how to move practice forwards.

Ms Greenwood explains, 'Using a learning community approach, everyone worked together to learn from each other through discussion, observation, mentoring and reflection. The learning community helped to develop our confidence and to focus on the particular speech, language and communication needs of our children.

'It was important to involve everyone in the Foundation team so that we all followed the same practice. At first, the team were a little worried about observing each other and talking about what they did, but confidence grew and the more they talked the more involved they became. Practitioners said the observations and discussions gave them helpful advice to enhance children's learning and they found it interesting as there were plenty of different ideas to try.'

Overall, the initiative has improved practice in a number of ways. Among them, explains Ms Greenwood:

• 'Reluctant talkers are now responding well to open-ended questions, discussing their plans and things they have drawn or made as we have made interested comments rather than asking closed questions.

• 'There is more conversational talk with children, sharing ideas and interacting with each other.

• 'The children have developed a natural interest in books and are using the strategies we have implemented to promote reading across all areas of learning. We now see children reading books to others and asking them questions about the story using the same prompts as the staff.

• 'Ofsted noted that the children's progress in reading had increased and they had a good understanding of phonics.'

CASE STUDY: THE NURSERY SCHOOL, BRIDLINGTON CHILDREN'S CENTRE

The centre's earlier attempt to organise a story-sharing session for parents attracted few people. Under the TfR initiative, the centre organised an open week, with two one-hour stay-and-play sessions a day for up to 15 parents at a time, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

After registration, parents joined in with play, then towards the end of the hour joined their child in one of three small groups for storytime. Nursery nurse Angela Birch explains, 'Initially, the practitioners were nervous about being watched and what the parents would think. However, once the first session was under way, they relaxed, spoke to parents and played as they usually did.'

The open week proved popular with parents and another is planned. The TfR initiative raised the quality of practice within the centre as:

• practitioners are now more aware of their interactions with children

• Hanen ABC strategies have improved practitioners' storytelling skills and interactions to promote communication

• interactive areas have been created using nursery rhymes and props and are proving popular, particularly with quieter children

• practitioners considered the position of quieter children at storytime and enabled these children to contribute more.

Di Chilvers is an advisory consultant in early childhood and Talk for Reading strategic lead

REFERENCES

• ABC and Beyond: building emergent literacy in early childhood settings by E Weitzman and J Greenberg, The Hanen Programme

• Early Reading Connects - family involvement toolkit, National Literacy Trust/DCSF, www.literacytrust.org.uk/assets/0000/1149/family_involvement_toolkit_200 9.pdf

MORE INFORMATION

For more information on Talk for Reading, contact Marion Hastings, Early Years Advisor, East Riding, Marion.Hastings@eastriding.gov.uk.